Method and device for recognizing road signs in the vicinity of a vehicle and for synchronization thereof to road sign information from a digital map

• US 8,918,277 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2011
• Issued: 12/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Niem, Wolfgang, Ibele, Philipp
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Calvin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mahne, Kevin P
• Application Number:
  US13/313,853
• Publication Number:
  US 20120150428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,112 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/409
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3602 Input other than that of destination using image analysis, e.g. detection of road signs, lanes, buildings, real preceding vehicles using a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30252 Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/56 exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/582 of traffic signs
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/09623 Systems involving the acquisition of information from passive traffic signs by means mounted on the vehicle G08G1/0967 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096758 where no selection takes place on the transmitted or the received information
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element

Abstract

A method for recognizing road signs in the vicinity of a vehicle and for synchronization thereof to road sign information from a digital map where, in the case of a recognition of road signs, road-sign recognition data are generated, navigation data being provided for localizing the vehicle in digital map data, and the road-sign recognition data being synchronized to the map data. To be able to provide unambiguous and the most accurate possible and thus improved road sign information to be output to the driver in the context of such a method, in the case of a discrepancy between the map data and the road-sign recognition data, the decision is made with the aid of reliability factors for the camera and map as to whether the data from the digital map or the road-sign recognition data are output in the vehicle.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for recognizing road signs in a vicinity of a vehicle and for synchronizing to road sign information from a digital map, comprising:

generating road-sign recognition data that indicates whether a road sign exists;

providing navigation data for localizing the vehicle in digital map data;

synchronizing the road-sign recognition data to the map data;

deciding, in the case of a discrepancy between road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, whether to output in the vehicle the road-sign data from the digital map or the road-sign recognition data in the vehicle, with the aid of at least one reliability factor, wherein the reliability factor is independent of the discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign data recognition data, and provides a reference point for the recognition probability of the road-sign recognition data; and

outputting road-sign data in the vehicle based on the deciding, wherein road-sign data derived from the road-sign recognition data is output irrespective of the road-sign data derived from the map data when a reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data is high;

wherein at least one of the operations is performed by a processor; and

wherein when there exists a discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, and both the reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data and a reliability factor of the map data are low, the road-sign data is output based on whichever one of the map data and the road-sign recognition data indicates an existence of a road sign.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the reliability factor relates to a reliability of at least one of the road sign recognition and of the digital map.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the reliability factor encompasses at least one of the following factors:

vehicle speed, weather, time of day, outside air temperature, driving-environment conditions, number of traffic lanes, and age of a camera of the vehicle.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the reliability factor of the map data is based on an age of the map data.

7. A device for recognizing a road sign in a vicinity of a vehicle and for synchronizing to road sign information from a digital map, comprising:

a road-sign recognition device to provide road-sign recognition data that indicates whether a road sign exists;

a navigation device for providing navigation data, digital map material being provided for mapping the navigation data;

a data synchronization device to synchronize the road-sign recognition data to road sign data derived from the map data;

an arrangement in the case of a discrepancy between the road sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, decides with the aid of reliability factors for a camera of the vehicle, wherein the reliability factor is independent of the discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign data recognition data, and provides a reference point for the recognition probability of the road-sign recognition data; and

an output device to output road-sign data in the vehicle, wherein the output device outputs road-sign data derived from the road-sign recognition data irrespective of the road-sign data derived from the map data when a reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data is high; and

wherein when there exists a discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, and both the reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data and a reliability factor of the map data are low, the output device outputs the road-sign data based on whichever one of the map data and the road-sign recognition data indicates an existence of a road sign.

8. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein the reliability factor relates to a reliability of at least one of the road sign recognition and of the digital map.

9. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein the reliability factor encompasses at least one of the following factors:

vehicle speed, weather, time of day, outside air temperature, driving-environment conditions, number of traffic lanes, and age of a camera of the vehicle.

10. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

11. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

12. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein the reliability factor relates to a reliability of at least one of the road sign recognition and of the digital map, and wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

13. The device as recited in claim 12, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

14. The device as recited in claim 7, wherein the reliability factor encompasses at least one of the following factors:

vehicle speed, weather, time of day, outside air temperature, driving-environment conditions, number of traffic lanes, and age of a camera of the vehicle, and wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

15. The device as recited in claim 14, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

16. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the reliability factor of the map data is based on an age of the map data.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a computer program, which is executable by a computer, comprising:

a program code arrangement having program code for performing the following;

generating, road-sign recognition data that indicates whether a road sign exists;

providing navigation data for localizing the vehicle in digital map data;

synchronizing the road-sign recognition data to the map data;

deciding, in the case of a discrepancy between road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, whether to output in the vehicle the road-sign data from the digital map or the road-sign recognition data in the vehicle, with the aid of at least one reliability factor, wherein the reliability factor is independent of the discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign data recognition data, and provides a reference point for the recognition probability of the road-sign recognition data; and

outputting road-sign data in the vehicle based on the deciding, wherein road-sign data derived from the road-sign recognition data is output irrespective of the road-sign data derived from the map data when a reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data is high; and

wherein when there exists a discrepancy between the road-sign data derived from the map data and the road-sign recognition data, and both the reliability factor of the road-sign recognition data and a reliability factor of the map data are low, the road-sign data is output based on whichever one of the map data and the road-sign recognition data indicates an existence of a road sign.

18. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the reliability factor relates to a reliability of at least one of the road sign recognition and of the digital map.

19. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the reliability factor encompasses at least one of the following factors:

vehicle speed, weather, time of day, outside air temperature, driving-environment conditions, number of traffic lanes, and age of a camera of the vehicle.

20. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

21. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

22. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the reliability factor relates to a reliability of at least one of the road sign recognition and of the digital map, and wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

23. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 22, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

24. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the reliability factor encompasses at least one of the following factors:

vehicle speed, weather, time of day, outside air temperature, driving-environment conditions, number of traffic lanes, and age of a camera of the vehicle, and wherein values for determining the reliability factor are obtained from vehicle sensors.

25. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 24, wherein the road sign is a speed limitation road sign.

26. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the reliability factor of the map data is based on an age of the map data.